It’s been nearly two years since rock ’n’ pop megaband Tayls released their outstanding LP Have You Ever? I’ve Always. Frontman Taylor Cole took a trip to Los Angeles to participate in the mixing process for that album, and during some downtime, he had an experience that continues to resonate.
Cole found himself idly scrolling through the “r4r” section of Reddit, in which redditors seek out fellow users of the self-proclaimed “front page of the internet” who share common interests, typically of a sexual nature. As Cole read through the wide variety of experiences that folks were seeking out on L.A.’s r4r, he found himself both fascinated and liberated. In addition, he noticed some parallels between the search for a dominant sexual partner and his frustration with the intense work of self-promotion that comes with being an independent musician.
“I care too much about what people think of me — like, so much that I have to think the words ‘no one is watching you’ when at the gym or grocery store,” Cole writes in a release. “So in seeing all the people being sexually free and putting themselves out there for what they really want — I felt, I don’t know, calm?
“Here I am, putting myself out there all over the internet, so that maybe someone out there reposts our music. Here I am, every freaking day emailing music industry people to try and notice us. With no response back. Here I am, living in Nashville, running as far and fast as I can up the musical hill, just so someone at the top can metaphorically tie me up and display me to the world. … Please TikTok doms and daddies, check out our band.”
As one does, he turned these complex feelings into a dancey, driving bop called “Star Dom,” the new Tayls single that hits streaming services today. As he sings in the refrain: “Gimme some satisfaction / Like I'm here at all / Take a chance on me / All you gotta do is / Trust in your pleasure now / Ain’t fuckin’ around / Ain’t got no feeling now.”
Today we’re very pleased to premiere the music video for the track, co-directed by Golden Thread Creative’s Alonna Summer and Alden Allen. Above, see Cole sing his frustrations as he dances under the ministrations of, well, a leather-clad dom whose outfit looks sorta like Batman. Find the single on your favorite streaming service via this handy link, follow the band on Instagram for updates, and don’t miss your chance to catch them in person at Nashville Pride Fest. Tayls plays at 2 p.m. Saturday on the Equality Main Stage.
